Spot Report by OSCE Observer Mission: 84th Russian convoy of ten vehicles crossed into Ukraine and returned through Donetsk Border Crossing Point

SUMMARY

On 19 September at 06:11 (Moscow time), the eighty-fourth[1] Russian convoy arrived at the Donetsk Border Crossing Point (BCP). A total of ten vehicles were checked by Russian Federation border guards and customs officers prior to their crossing into Ukraine. All ten vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation by 13:52 on 19 September.

DETAIL

Leaving the Russian Federation

On 19 September at 06:11, the Observer Mission observed the arrival of a Russian convoy at the gate of the Donetsk BCP. The convoy consisted of ten cargo trucks; three of them belonged to the Russian Ministry of Emergency Situations (MES), and seven were civilian trucks. Nine cargo trucks bore the inscription “Humanitarian aid from the Russian Federation” (in Russian). At 06:11, the vehicles entered the customs control area and queued in three lines. Once the convoy arrived, the vehicles were visually checked from the outside by Russian Federation border guards and customs officers. The truck drivers rolled up/opened the tarpaulins of the trucks and the border guards and customs officials performed a visual observation from the outside. One dog was present and used by Russian Federation border guards to check the vehicles from the outside.

Three Ukrainian border guards and three customs officers were observed accompanying their Russian counterparts; they also performed a visual observation of the vehicles from the outside (without entering the trucks’ cargo space). They had clipboards in their hands and were taking notes. By 06:35, all of the vehicles had left the BCP towards Ukraine.

Returning to the Russian Federation

At 13:33, the convoy returned and queued in the customs area. The tarpaulins of the trucks were opened and Russian Federation border guards and customs officers visually checked the returning convoy from the outside. Ukrainian representatives – three border guards and two custom officers – were present during this check. The Ukrainian officials also performed visual checks of the opened trucks from the outside. By 13:52, all ten vehicles had crossed back into the Russian Federation.

[1] Based on the Observer Mission’s counting, this convoy is considered the eighty-fourth convoy that has crossed into Ukraine through the “Donetsk” or “Gukovo” BCPs. However, so far all these convoys crossed through the “Donetsk” BCP.